Sleepover

We promised our kids that as soon as the basement was done we would have a family sleepover down here. So here we are...









So fun! I love these kids.
Posted from my iPhone

{ more projects }

I don't think I even posted about our projects over Christmas break. We decided to finish Logan's office and redo my salon! It was a lot of work but well worth it.

I thought we were going to take a break from projects for a bit but it's true that we have needed to do something about our downstairs family room for a while now. It was the epitome of ghetto. But it was nice because we didn't really care what the kids did down there. There wasn't anything they could hurt, it was already trashed.

On Presidents day there was an ad for a door busters sale at RC Willey's. I went there thinking we were picking up just a couch/love seat set that was a great deal to use with our other furniture, but soon found out Logan had something completely different in mind.

So here is the finished product. Once again, no before pictures. But who wants to remember ghetto-ville anyway right?!

We are still waiting on the TV console that is backordered but thrilled with the way it turned out!

Just in time for this weekend and the big OSCAR Extravaganza!

{ February 24 }

Silly business . . .

If there's anything we are good at around here, it's silly business. The other night, we spent almost an hour taking pictures of our funny faces. Here are some of the highlights:

{seriously scary}

{monkey face}

{fat faces}

{Frog face}

{Even boss got in on the action}

I love it when we just have fun together.

{ Nuvo Convention }

Ayden and I spent last weekend at the NUVO CONVENTION.

It is a relatively new but incredible dance convention. The list of teachers is unbelievable, and it was an honor to go.

I was debating wether or not to take Ayden, knowing that he would be taking class for 12 hrs in 2 days. So originally I signed him up for the nuby class that is taught only on Saturday. Well he was dying to come on Friday so he could take class from some of the choreographers he knows from SYTYCD so I brought him along. And he LOVED it!

Not only did he love them, they loved him! He got so much individual attention! It was awesome. Here are some pictures of him with the incredible staff . . .

This is Travis Wall. Anyone who watches So You Think you Can Dance knows who Travis Wall is. He was runner up on the 2nd season of the show. But since then he has been back on the show to choreograph some of the most beautiful pieces I've ever seen. I took his class with my girls and it was an incredible combo. He is amazing.

This is Ray Leeper. He has been around for a long time and he is the director of NUVO. He used to come to the studio I grew up at and choreograph a few pieces each year. I have also taken class from him many of times at other Conventions. A few days before the event, I sent him a message on facebook just saying hi and letting him know how excited I am to bring my son and my girls to his convention. When I got there he came right up and hugged me. He said "of course I remember you! How could I forget a tall beauty?!" I was flattered!

This is Stacy Tookey. She has done choreography all over the world including SYTYCD. She is so beautiful! She absolutely adored Ayden. She knew his name and kept calling on him to perform things for the other dancers. She even said "Ladies . . . this guys got it going on!"

I also took Stacy's class. She taught an amazing contemporary combo. Love her.

Ayden was so excited to take from Sonya Tayeh. She is one of the most interesting people. Yes, she has a mohawk. But she can dance and interpret music like no one I've ever seen. She is so creative and a little strange at times. She is an incredible teacher though. She wouldn't let those kids get away with even the slightest thing. But she made it fun and interesting.

Last, but definitely not least . . . Ivan Koumaev. He is one of the most amazing hip hop dancers I've ever seen. He taught an awesome combo! I took his class with my older girls and we had a blast. He was also on season 2 of shweebs (sytycd nickname in our home) and he was one of my favorite.

It was an absolute dream weekend for me. I was in heaven. And I'm so happy that Ayden loved it as much as he did.

I know there will be many more weekends spent dancing with my son. So fun.

{ sneak peak }

My kids had their first performance of the season on Wednesday night.

There are many more to follow but here is a sneak peak of 1 of each of their dances . . .

{ Februaury 14th }

Happy Valentines' Day

I am so happy that we have a day to think about all the people we love. I know that Valentines' is usually when you celebrate a more romantic kind of love, but today I want to take the opportunity to think about all the wonderful people that I love in my life!

I have incredible friends up here in Layton. I have been lucky to find friends close by to make this really feel like home. I love them and I'm thankful for them.

I have the most wonderful extended family. From great cousins and aunts and uncles, to awesome in-laws and nieces and nephews. They bless my life so much. I am so thankful that I live close by to them and I am able to form strong relationships with them.

Parents and grandparents. Honestly I don't know what to say. I have been blessed with incredible people to raise and guide me in my life. I have a special relationship with each of them and they mean more to me then words can say.

Siblings. I love my siblings. Just last night we had Jenny, Trevor, Brian and Alexia over for dinner. I enjoyed every minute of their company. I am thankful for the relationships I have with my brothers and sisters, and I thankful to my parents for being willing to have so many of us. They are my truest friends and I love them.

My kids. We spent this morning talking about the people we love while we decorated our house.

We enjoyed some delicious pink heart pancakes for breakfast.

And they opened up some gifts from Mom and Dad.

{Helping Myla open her butterfly alphabet book}

{Sophie and her much desired Rapunzel barbie}

{The exact reaction I expected. Ayden asked for this Utah snuggie a long time ago and I have been saving it for this day }

Only another parent can understand the deep love you feel for your children. You would do anything for them. You worry about them. You pray for them.

I love and appreciate my 3 babies.

And last but not least, the love of my life. My best friend. The person who brings me more joy than I ever could have imagined. Logan, I love you with all my heart and cherish you in my life.

Thanks for always making me feel loved.

Happy Valentines' Day.

{ February 9 }

We have had some sickness woes at our house lately.

It started a few weeks ago when I got strep. I waited too long to go to the Dr thinking it would go away on it's own. It wasn't until I was so ill I couldn't get out of bed that I finally decided to get checked out. The Dr actually said "oh, gross" when she looked in my mouth. It was bad. After a few days of antibiotics I started to feel better. I did my full round of antibiotics but for some reason a few days after I finished them, it came back! So I was back in to see the Dr for another round.

A few days after that, Logan woke up with the same symptoms. He didn't wait like I did, he went straight in and was immediately diagnosed with strep as well.

Once we were all better from the strep, my eyes started bothering me. It felt like I had a headache in my eye ball. So back to the Dr. and the diagnosis. . .keratitis! An infection of the Cornea! Seriously? The treatment . . . steroid drops and no contacts!

So that's right, here I am on day 9 of no contacts! I'm going crazy!! I wear night and day contacts which I sleep in! They never come out. I do believe I have gone a little mad from this whole adventure!

It's one thing to be sick as a mom, it's another thing to watch your baby be sick and not be able to comfort her. Myla hasn't been feeling will the last few days, but when she woke up this morning I could tell it had gotten worse. She is such a good sleeper and she wouldn't take a nap today. So I got her in to the Dr. and she has an ear infection. Poor thing.

Here she is after some ibuprofen, antibiotics, and numbing drops. Finally sleeping. I feel so bad for her. I really hope the drugs kick in quickly and she starts feeling better. She's such a happy baby, it's hard to watch her suffer.

We are generally so healthy! Hopefully our sickness woes are wrapping up.

{ Gunnar )

Every time I say she and Gunnar are best friends, Sophie corrects me by saying, "MOM! We are boyfriend and girlfriend!"

We are in so much trouble.

Just a couple shots of the love birds during their play date today . . .

( February 7 }

My sister Laura is awesome about blogging. She posts every day. What a great way to document the life of her family. She is an inspiration to me.

I wanted to post a few things about our family right now.

Logan:

My crazy husband. Logan is currently finishing his degree at the U. He stopped going to school when we moved up here 4 1/2 years ago because he was working full time and there just wasn't time. He has always planned on finishing at some point, even though the work that he does usually doesn't require a degree but more so experience. He has 14 credits right now and hopes to graduate in the fall.

He is also doing a couple different projects work wise. His biggest project right now is a starting an online pharmaceutical sales business for a company in Canada. This is what takes up most of his time, but of course he doesn't stop there. He has a few other side businesses that he's working on as well as the occasional website design for friends and family.

Logan truly amazes me. He is different than anyone else I've ever known. He works harder than anyone I know. He rarely sleeps, and hardly eats, because he is so invested in his work and his family. He would do anything for our family, of that I'm sure.

We are going on a cruise together in a few months. I am so excited to get to spend time with this man. He is the love of my life. He is my best friend. He brings me more joy than I thought possible. I can't believe I'm lucky enough to have been married to him for 9 years!

Ayden:

Where do I start with this little guy? 6 years old and going to 10. Ayden is brilliant. He is an incredible student. He was playing at a friend's house the other day and her mom called to tell me that Ayden was doing her second grade home work which she had been struggling with. When I went to Parent/Teacher conference last week, his teacher looked at me and said "what can I say, he's perfect". He has been getting 100% on his tests since the beginning of the school year.

I was concerned at first that because he is so far ahead, he'd become bored and disruptive. The kid can talk, he got that from me. But Mrs. Moon said he is a delight to have in their class. He keeps himself entertained by helping the other kids, and challenging himself. I'm so proud of him.

Ayden is an incredible gymnast! We see many backhand springs, back walkovers, and ariels around this joint. And the name of the game is practice!! He gets his mind set on something and he doesn't stop until he has mastered it! It is inspirational. I'm so proud of the progress he has made with dance, and I am looking forward to all the competitions coming up this spring.

Sophie:

I am in love with this girl. Man she's trouble. And she's a moody hormonal girl, but I just adore her. She brings so much joy to our family. She is by far the most generous little kid I know. She never hesitates to share with her siblings and friends.

Sophie is very social. She has many friends, including Gunnar (A boy on her dance team) who she refers to as her "boy friend". She is already in that silly, giddy girl stage. She is flirty! And she really does love Gunnar. The other day she said, "Mom, know what I love most about Gunnar? His laugh. He has the funniest laugh." Then a few days later I picked up her and Gunnar after school. They were in the back of the car playing when he started to laugh. Sophie cried, "There it is! That's the laugh I love!" I had to pullover because I was laughing so hard I couldn't see. She is always cracking us up with her one-liners.

Sophie has also developed a love of music and dancing. We went to my cousin Brent's wedding a couple weeks ago and we couldn't pull her away from the dance floor. She loves to turn on music and "teach her class" a dance routine. She is the best little dancer on her team and she has recently gotten her right splits flat.

Sophie loves school! She is learning to read and write so well. She also does math which is quite impressive for preschool. At her school they have disciplinary sticks. If they keep all their sticks they get a treat at the end of the week. Sophie loves to report at the end of each day that she kept all her sticks! There has only been one week this whole school year that she lost her sticks. I'm proud of her for being good at school and working hard.

Sophie is still so beautiful it hurts. I look at her face and her beautiful long body and I am amazed at how perfect she is.

Myla:

Last, but certainly not least. Oh how I love this peanut. Myla truly brings balance to our family. Our love for her is what brings us all together. I get a kick out of watching the other 2 love her so much. Their favorite thing to do is go in her room when she wakes up and climb in the crib with her. And she loves them too. Sometimes I get so wrapped up in protecting her from them that I forget that she actually likes all the attention. She loves to follow Sophie around, especially when she has friends over. And she loves when her big brother plays with her and carries her around.

Most of all Myla loves her "da da". She wants Mom when she's sad or tired, but she lights up when daddy is around. She loves to play with him. And he loves her too. He lights up when she's around. With him working at home I try not to bother him too much, but sometimes he comes out of his office just to see her and play with her for a minute. She is a little spoiled though. Since Dad is home, she gets to take naps regularly and hardly ever has to leave the house. Although that seems like a good thing, it has definitely enhanced her fear of strangers. If Mom or Dad could be with her at all times, she would be a happy camper.

Myla hasn't taken to the signing the way that I had hoped she would. I know part of the problem is my inconsistency. But she loves to mimic the sounds she hears. She has recently mastered "Ma ma", "Da Da", "Ba Ba Ba"(not sure if it's bottle, or Boston) and "dah" (yes in German. We want her to be well rounded). Its so cute to hear her try to repeat the things she hears and communicate with us.

Myla finally got her first tooth! 11 months is all it took! She took a couple steps last night walking between Logan and I so she should be walking here in the next little bit. It blows my mind how fast the time has gone. She will be one year old in just a few weeks. It's hard to believe she's been in our family that long, and yet it's hard to remember life without her. I love her so much and I'm so excited to see the person she becomes.

Well there you have it. I think its good to sit down sometimes and think about the ones you love. I'd love to do this for all my family members, have an opportunity to document the things I love about them. I am so blessed.